In today's troubled real estate market, you need an agent who can be your personal guide through the often frustrating short sale process and your ally throughout the homebuying process. Having attended college, lived, worked, and raised a family here in the Tampa Bay area, I'm the local expert. (Click here to learn more about me.)

What This Means for YOU!

• Your Personal Guide Through the Homeselling/Homebuying Obstacle Course: I will take as much time as necessary to make sure you understand each step of the short sale, selling or buying processes, so you can feel secure with the decisions you make. You're always a VIP when you hire the A.J. Team!
• Your Ally in Troubled Times: When you feel helpless against an adversarial lender, I'll stand with you to help protect your interests and future. I'll help you get your home sold, your debt forgiven, your stress relieved, and your lender off your back.
• More Time for You, Less Time Hunting for Your Dream Home: I know the neighborhoods that will meet your personal criteria.
• Contacts, Contacts, Contacts! Not sure where to begin looking for a lender, homeowners insurance, or a property inspector? Don't trust your home to a company picked at random out of the telephone book. I can point you towards local professionals who can help you and provide the services you need.

Need Information Fast? Click Your Category: 

Homeowner Facing Foreclosure
• Relocating to the Tampa Bay Area
• First-time Homebuyer

Your situation is unique. I can provide personalized information based on your unique situation and your personal criteria. Click Here to receive the information you're searching for, personalized just for you.

News You Need:

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Florida Offers Help to Some with Home Down Payment RISMEDIA, July 2, 2009-(MCT)-Starting Wednesday, Florida hopes to stoke its real estate market by becoming one of the few states to offer $8,000 in down-payment assistance to qualified home buyers so they can benefit upfront from a new federal tax credit.

“Here in Florida, rather than qualified buyers waiting to get the tax credit on the tail end of the process, in the form of a credit after they have filed the tax returns, it will allow them to get it upfront and let them use it for down-payment assistance and fees,” said David Hart, vice president of legislative and government affairs for the Florida Home Builders.

Read more.

Is a stronger tax credit needed to motivate prospective buyers? RISMEDIA, June 25, 2009-Despite affordable home prices and low interest rates, the majority of Americans considering a home purchase still need a little extra incentive. According to a recent survey conducted by Weichert, Realtors, increasing the current tax credit to $15,000 and/or extending it to all buyers would offer the motivation needed to turn more onlookers into buyers. Read more.

Mortgage rates fall from 7-month high Rates for 30-year home loans fell to 5.38% this week after soaring to a seven-month high last week. Read more.

Get the most out of $8K tax credit For some, it's better to wait until 2010 to take the homebuyer tax credit and increase 2009 paychecks. Read more.

DOWNPAYMENT ASSISTANCE BACK ON AGAIN: Details of FHA's $8K downpayment advance
HUD says FHA borrowers need at least 3.5% down, and consumers cannot tap into it until lenders flesh out details. Read more. http://www.floridarealtors.org/NewsAndEvents/n1-052909.cfm

Mortgage rates rise, remain below 5%
Rates on 30-year mortgages rose this week to average 4.9%; most analysts predict more increases. Read more. http://www.floridarealtors.org/NewsAndEvents/n2-052909.cfm

11% of Florida homes in foreclosure process

Florida ranks first nationally for homes in foreclosure and is the only state in double digits. The national rate is 9.12 percent. Read more. http://www.floridarealtors.org/NewsAndEvents/n3-052909.cfm

Number of Home Sales Rises, But Prices Keep Plummeting
Washington Post (05/28/09) P. A13; Merle, Renae
Sales of existing homes in April beat analysts' expectations by rising 2.9 percent from March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.68 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors, but the housing market is still weak because there are so many properties on the market. The number of homes for sale rose nearly 9 percent last month to a 10.2-month supply, and distressed homes now account for 45 percent of the market. Median home prices plunged to $170,200 -- down 15.4 percent from last April -- because of the excess inventory

J. Rob Pinion II, SVP Divisional Manager, Pinnacle Financial (5/28/09): "Yesterday was the largest increase in rates I have seen in many, many years. This was particularly troubling because we really could not determine a reason for the drop in the bond market. This is the answer that we got this morning: The market is not rebounding much this morning, but it does appear that it has stopped it's drop."

Rise in Rates Jolts Markets
Wall Street Journal (05/28/09) P. A1; Rappaport, Liz
The Federal Reserve has been purchasing mortgage-backed securities and Treasuries in an effort to hold down mortgage rates and move the economy out of recession, but mortgage rates and Treasury yields both hit a six-month high on May 27. Investors increasingly are concerned that the central bank's strategy could cause inflation, and they worry that demand will be lacking for the $2 trillion in Treasury bonds it plans to sell this year to pay for stimulus programs. Additionally, higher interest rates will reduce investor demand for existing mortgage-backed securities, as the loans included in new securities will pay more interest.

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